If you would like to find Uranus, this is a good opportunity as Mars and Uranus will be within 1 degree from Feb 11 to the 13th. Best time would be before 9 pm so they are high enough in the sky.

Looking at my notes, I had to get it over 100X before it didn't look like a star. At 266X it was a small blue ball in my 8" Dob. But I would expect you could see the blue ball in a 70 mm telescope if conditions will let you get it over 100X.

Thanks for that update. I have always liked searching for that somewhat elusive greenish disk. (long before GOTO mounts where available). For me there is something mesmerizing about that small round disk in the eyepiece. Maybe it's the fact it is so far away yet with a telescope and some magnification you can actually see it as a small disk instead of a barely visible spec in the sky.

I was checking it out last night in my CPC800 with a 12 mm eyepiece. Unless it was my imagination I'm pretty sure I could make out the rings...or maybe the moons? Hard to tell since it was so small. Still pretty neat.

Mars was a great guide to Neptune in early December a couple of months ago...it did such a great job it will now be the guide to find Uranus.

We've had so much rain and cloud cover here in Northern California I've had one clear night this year to observe. I am not sanguine about the possibility of seeing the Lunar X or this conjunction next week since rain/clouds are forecast for the next 10 days...but there is always hope!

If you would like to find Uranus, this is a good opportunity as Mars and Uranus will be within 1 degree from Feb 11 to the 13th. Best time would be before 9 pm so they are high enough in the sky.

Looking at my notes, I had to get it over 100X before it didn't look like a star. At 266X it was a small blue ball in my 8" Dob. But I would expect you could see the blue ball in a 70 mm telescope if conditions will let you get it over 100X.

Happy planet hunting! Love to hear success stories.

If you need help, ask.

I will be using my binoculars of course, so Uranus will resemble a star.

I will still try for it nonetheless. Just need to look for a bluish "star" in the correct spot!

This would be something to look forward to, as I don't think I have ever laid eyes upon Uranus before.

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I will be using my binoculars of course, so Uranus will resemble a star.

I will still try for it nonetheless. Just need to look for a bluish "star" in the correct spot!

This would be something to look forward to, as I don't think I have ever laid eyes upon Uranus before.

I first saw it a few years ago in my Nikon 10x50 AE binos. It looked slightly greenish to me but it was starting to get low towards the western horizon. (And who knows about my color vision and perception.) I grabbed my C80ED scope and could make out a small disk. I forget what power I was using. And, I'm located 15 miles west of downtown Houston so I have plenty of light pollution to deal with. It's definitely doable with appropriate binos. Good luck!

Mars is dropping in on his great-grandfather. Have you read their family history? Let’s just say the planetary pairing will be prettier!

On February 10th the Moon zips in, like a teen eager to be anywhere but there. On this date, if you extend a line from Mars through the crescent moon (about half the apparent Mars-Moon separation) you will come the Alpha Piscium (Al Rischa). If your telescope reveals a planetary disk, you might be able to split this challenging double.

Alpha Psc Mags.: 4.3 and 5.2 sep. about 1.8”. A couple of solar systems will fit end to end between the stars.

I've had to get up to around 50x to see any color. The first time I ever found it using a star chart was obvious though, it was noticeably green. However, looking at it this past weekend I couldn't make out any color at all.

A bit more than a month ago I was able to navigate to Uranus from the moon using 10x50 binocs in my Bortles 7 skies. It was a dim, greenish-blue star. I was then able to resolve it into a tiny disc at 130x in my Onesky 130.

I wonder how much the very large white cloud cap over the pole of Uranus will affect our ability to see color in the eyepiece view of modest aperture scopes. With a 3.5 arcsec diameter, I won't get much detail in my 100 mm scope.

My hopes of observing are pretty tenuous based on the cloud forecast. I may get a chance on the10th. That date has the only somewhat favorable forecast, and Uranus and Mars will both be placed within my widest FOV.

You don't really need Mars in the FOV. It is just a visual guidepost to help find Mars.

True, but since I do not use, or even have GoTo, I need something to star-hop (planet-hop) from to find it. Pisces is a very dim constellation in my light polluted skies, so I need something to even get me in the neighborhood. For both Uranus and Neptune, I tend to use the Moon or Mars. Those two move quickly through the ecliptic (the Moon more so than Mars) allowing them to pass the ice giants with some frequency.

There may be some more clear sky opportunities later in the month with longer hops from Mars, but it gets more difficult.

I wonder how much the very large white cloud cap over the pole of Uranus will affect our ability to see color in the eyepiece view of modest aperture scopes. With a 3.5 arcsec diameter, I won't get much detail in my 100 mm scope.

My hopes of observing are pretty tenuous based on the cloud forecast. I may get a chance on the10th. That date has the only somewhat favorable forecast, and Uranus and Mars will both be placed within my widest FOV.

Wow, cool! I looked at it last night in my little Questar 3.5 and was confused that it was more white than aqua in hue. Hadn't seen this image yet.

To give you a head’s up on your ability to see the planet’s disk, try observing the nearby double star Gamma Arietis, which is relatively easy to locate near the bright Alpha and Beta Arietis. Gamma Ari consists of two 4th mag stars separated by 7.4”. Uranus is almost exactly 1/2 this apparent size.